Improvement in curd separators and coolers



2 Sheet s-Sheet 1.

Patented Aug, 26,1879.

' E. TYHURST. Curd Separator andCooler.

Fay l NAFETERS, PHOTO-LWHOGRAFNER, WASHINGTON, D C.

2 Sheet s-Shleet 2; E. TYHURST. Culd Separator and Cooler.

No. 218,906. Patented Aug. 26,21879.

function is to pierce and UNITED STATE s; PATENT OFFICE EDWARD TYHURST, OF OHATHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA.

IMPROVEMENT IN CURD sEPARAToRs AND eooLl-:Rs

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 218,906, dated August 26, 1879 application `iiled April 10, 1879.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD TYHURs'r, of Chatham, in the Province of Ontario and Dominion of Canada, have invented a certain new and Improved Curd Separator and Cooler; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of 'the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in Which j Figure 1 is a side elevation; Fig. 2, a longitudinal vertical section; Fig. 3, a cross-sec tion 5 Fig. 4, an end elevation of the housing detached.

. Similar letters of reference in the several iigures denote the same parts. p

The object of this invention'is to improve the means for cooling the curd and separating it fromthe Whey; and to this end it consists in the construction and combination of parts which I will now proceed to describe.

In the drawings, A is the curd-sieve or separator-box, mounted on legs a, stayed by crossbraces c1 co1. Thesides of this 'box are vertical and its bottom and ends concave, as shown at a2 c3, respectively. Along the lowest or middle portion of the bottom is arranged a metal strainer, B, to permit the whey to run off into an inclined discharge-spout, D. 'lhe outer side walls ot' the box are slotted, as shown at a, or provided with a projecting flange, a5, below Which is arranged a cog-rack, O.

- E is a stout cylinder, whose shaft or journals project beyond the said Walls, and are provided With pinions e c, which engage with the racks C C and cause the cylinder to travel along in the box Whenever it is rotated in either direction. The cylinder is driven by a heavy wheel, F, at one side of the box, and is provided with a counterbalancingwheel, G, at theopposite side, which may be furnished with circumferential gear-teeth g, for the purpose of imparting motion to the pinion h of the fan- Wheel H, arranged above it, as shown. The said cylinder is constructed with a large number oi' projecting spikes or divide the curd, so that the Whey can escape therefrom, and so that'cool air can be introduced into it for the purpose of cooling it. These spikes or pins are made longer toward the'middle of the cylpins, d d', whose inder to correspond to the increased depth of the curd, and those that operate directly above the strainer are enlarged at their outer end, as shown at d', in order to open or scrape the curd from the strainer and allow the whey to drain 0E more freely.

I do not limit myself to the form of such enlargements, as the desired result may be accomplished by many different forms ot' pin, the effective principle consisting simply in increasing the acting surface of the pins at their outer end. Over this cylinder is placed a housing or cover, I, the end Walls of which over the sides of the curd-sieve are vertical, While the side walls facing the end of said sieve may be vertical, inclined, or convex. Straps J J extend down from the end Walls to a slide-block or guide, K, which moves in the groove a, or under the projecting lange a5 at each side of the curd-sieve, thereby confining the movable cover, with its contained cylinder and fan, to the said curd-sieve', and guiding and steadying them in their operation.

The top of the cover or housing is preferably semi-cylindrical in" form, and contains the revolving fan, which is driven by the action of the gear-wheels G h as the apparatus moves along the curd-sieve. The bearing of the fanshaft nearest to the pinion It is made adjustable by means of a screw, i, or any equivalent thereof, so that the pinion h can beraised out of gear with the Wheel G, and the fan can thereby be thrown out of action at any time and for any length of time desired.

The front and rear sides of the housing are hinged, and can be opened or closed, as may be at any time preferred. When closed they operate to prevent the cylinder from spattera ing the curds and whey outl of the box, and they confine and direct the cool air-currents from the fan into the openings made in the curd by the action of the pins d d on the cylinder.

Suitable openings m should be made in the ends of the housing to admit air to the fan.

The strainer is secured in place by solder-V ing tvvo turned-down flanges, b b, to its lateral edges, and inserting it from above into the slot or opening provided in the bottom of the curd-sieve for its reception. The dependent iianges b b may then be tacked to the bottom of the card-sieve, or secured by strips r tacked thereto, or otherwise fastened in place by any suitablemeans. This makes a neat and smooth surface above and a secure fastening, and is besides very easily and conveniently accomplished.

' The concavity and inclination of the ends of the curd-sieve are adapted in form to the shape ofthe cylinder and the length of its arms or pins, which also correspond to the concavity of the bottom.

The operation of the machine 'will be understood from the description already given.

I claim as my invention- 1. In combination with the cnrd-sieve having a strainer arranged along the middle of' its bottom and a traveling rotary cylinder working therein, the teeth or arms d ot' the cylinder over the strainer, enlarged at their ends, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the fan, arranged over and traveiin g with the cylinder, with the traveling stirring-cylinder and the housing or cover to contine and direct the air-blast, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the traveling stirring-cylinder with the card-sieve, and with a housing or cover to prevent spattering the contents of the curd-sieve, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the curd-sieve, the traveling stirring-cylinder, the traveling fan, and means, substantially as described, for throwing the fan out of gear Without interfering` With the continued operation of the cylinder, substantially as described.

5. The combination of the card-sieve, the guided blocks K, the slots a4, or flanges a5, either or both, the racks C C, the pinions e e, the cylinder E, and the large counterbalancing-Wheels E G, to steady the movement and increase the effective force of the cylinder, substantially as described.

-EDWARD TYHUnsT. 

